Are you looking for something to do this summer? Why not learn a new language? As I touched upon in a previous article, there are so many benefits to being bilingual, such as job opportunities, being able to talk to the locals when you travel and cognitive benefits! There are so many resources out there for language learning, like apps (such as Duolingo), music, radio, books and films in your target language, your local library, workbooks and worksheets (you can find them on Amazon or download them online), flashcards, and tutors. With that in mind, here are 12 languages you should consider taking up in your free time.
1. Spanish (español)
Country of origin: Spain
Native speakers: 405 million
Country with most speakers: Mexico (122 million)
Spanish is probably the most familiar foreign language to Americans, since our neighbors to the south speak it, and many Latin Americans in the US and Puerto Rico call it their mother tongue. In fact, the United States has more Spanish speakers than Spain, the country that brought the language to the Americas.
While there are many dialects of Spanish, such as Castillian (Spain), Mexican, Chilean and Cuban, they aren’t as different from each other as Arabic dialects. There are so many resources out there to learn it, and knowing the language can help you when traveling abroad, as well as a career in immigration, law, business, tourism or education.
2. Arabic (العَرَبِيَّة)
Country of origin: Saudi Arabia
Native speakers: 295 million
Country with most speakers: Egypt (77 million)
Arabic is one of the most widely known languages in the world. It’s spoken mainly in the Middle East and North Africa, but there are many communities of Arabic speakers in the US, Canada, Latin America and Western Europe. Arabic is considered a “critical language” by the US government, meaning its speakers are in high demand for positions in national security, military and intelligence. However, Arabic is often considered one of the most difficult languages to learn and there are many different dialects to choose from. I would recommend learning either MSA (Modern Standard Arabic) or the Egyptian dialect.
3. Mandarin Chinese (中文)
Country of origin: China
Native speakers: 955 million
You always hear people saying that China is going to take over the world one day. That certainly seems true, considering it has the second largest economy, largest population and one of the largest militaries in the world. Learning Chinese can be difficult with its complex system of characters and tonal inflections, but the effort is worth it. Chinese is beneficial for the business world, and you’ll be able to communicate with nearly 1 billion more people across the world!
4. French (français)
Country of origin: France
Native speakers: 75 million
Countries with most speakers: France (59 million)
French is often called “la langue de l’amour,” or the language of love. Being a Romance language, it shares many grammatical rules and vocabulary with its neighbors Italian, Portuguese and Spanish, meaning if you know one of them, it will be easier to learn the others. Many of the products we buy have information in not only English and Spanish, but also French, because of the large French-speaking minority in Quebec, Canada.
Knowing French is incredibly useful if you want to travel to France, as many locals don’t speak English. If you want to go into the Peace Corps or do something with human rights, French is a common second language in many African countries. It can also help if you want to do business in Canada or Europe.
5. Russian (русский)
Country of origin: Russia
Native speakers: 155 million
Russian is also a critical language, especially due to the post-Cold War tensions with Russia surrounding Ukraine and Crimea, as well as the US 2016 presidential election. The Russian language has a different alphabet, called Cyrillic, which appears easier to learn than other alphabets such as Arabic and Japanese kana because of its resemblance to the Latin one. Russia also has a rich culture and history, and there have been many great Russian writers in the past few centuries. Or if you’re heading to the World Cup this summer, you can learn how to get around the host cities in Russia.
6. ASL (American Sign Language)
Country of origin: United States
Native speakers (signers): 250,000-500,000 in the US and Canada
Despite not being spoken, American Sign Language is still very much a language. Learning ASL can help the deaf community feel more accepted and help us communicate with them without any barriers. People across the country are realizing how beneficial ASL is, as many schools, such as my former middle school, are offering classes. The only downside is that these signs don’t translate abroad, as many other countries such as New Zealand, France, Japan and even Puerto Rico have their own versions of sign language.
7. German (Deutsch)
Country of origin: Germany
Native speakers: 95 million
Country with most speakers: Germany (75 million)
I have German ancestry, so someday I’d like to try and start learning German again. As its name implies, German belongs to the Germanic language family, along with English, Dutch, Swedish and others. It’s an important language to know if you end up living, studying or working in Europe, as 5 countries have it as an official language, and because Germany is a European economic powerhouse. Since it’s close to English, many words are similar in German, although the grammar has some quirks.
8. Portuguese (português)
Country of origin: Portugal
Native speakers: 215-220 million
Country with most speakers: Brazil (205 million)
Portuguese is another Romance language, but it’s a bit more centralized than Spanish, spoken mainly in Brazil and Portugal, along with a few smaller African nations. Like Spanish and French, it’s relatively easy to learn and can be useful if you decide to go into tourism, sports or business, since Brazil is arguably the soccer capital of the world, has hosted the Olympics and World Cup, and it famous for its cities of Rio and São Paulo. One thing to keep in mind, though, is that Brazilian Portuguese and European Portuguese are drastically different, and it would be more worthwhile to learn the Brazilian dialect since it is spoken by 95% of Portuguese speakers.
9. Japanese (日本語)
Country of origin: Japan
Native speakers: 125 million
Many Japanese words have made it into our everyday English vocabularies, such as futon, emoji, tycoon, sushi and ninja. Knowing Japanese can be incredibly useful if you decide to go into business, since Japan is a major economic power and producer of electronics. You can also take time to explore Japan’s fascinating pop culture, such as anime, manga and J-pop.
10. Korean (한국어)
Country of origin: Korean peninsula
Native speakers: 76 million
South Korea is a global economic power, and learning Korean would help you get ahead in a career in business. With the threat of North Korea, on the other hand, knowing this critical language could land you a job in foreign affairs, national security or intelligence. Korea has a vibrant culture that includes K-pop music, which you can explore as you learn Korean!
11. Italian (italiano)
Country of origin: Italy
Native speakers: 59 million
Many people in the US have Italian ancestry, so, like German, learning Italian would be a good way to reconnect with your ancestry. Being a Romance language, it is easier to pick up than others and many people say that either French or Italian is the most beautiful language in the world. Maybe that upcoming trip to Rome will motivate you to learn the local language!
12. Hindi (हिन्दी)
Country of origin: India
Native speakers: 310 million
With India being the second largest country in the world, and large Indian communities calling the US, UK and Canada home, it would be useful to know a little bit of Hindi. It is one of the most widely spoken Indian languages as well. It has an interesting writing system known as Devanagari, which in my opinions looks very artsy and unique.
Honorable Mentions:
Latin (lingua latina)
Country of origin: Italy
Number of native speakers: N/A
Latin is the OG of languages. It died out centuries ago but has still had a profound impact on not only the Romance languages but also German and English! A lot of our grammar and words come from Latin, and we see Latin terms everywhere in our daily life: we use it in history, medicine and law! Plus, if you’re Catholic, you’ll likely know a thing or two in the Church’s official language.
Welsh (Cymraeg)
Country of origin: United Kingdom (Wales)
Native speakers: 700,000
Welsh is a fascinating language, although it’s not very useful due to its small size and many of its speakers also knowing English. I taught myself a little bit of this Celtic tongue a couple years ago just for fun. It’s got a cool alphabet: “ll,” “rh,” “ff,” and “dd” are letters. Also, “w” and “y” are vowels!
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